Air conditioning system

Abstract

An air conditioning system sufficiently cleans an indoor heat exchanger by using moisture in indoor air even when a room is dry before operation. An air conditioning system includes an air conditioner having an indoor unit and an outdoor unit, a humidifier, and a controller. The indoor unit has an indoor heat exchanger and exchanges heat of the indoor air by passing the indoor air through the indoor heat exchanger. The humidifier supplies moisture to the room to increase a humidity in the room. The controller controls the indoor unit and the humidifier. In the cleaning mode, the controller controls the humidifier to raise the humidity in the room, and then controls the indoor unit to perform a cleaning motion of cleaning a surface of the indoor heat exchanger by generating dew condensation water on the surface of the indoor heat exchanger.

1 . An air conditioning system comprising:
 an air conditioner including an outdoor unit and an indoor unit, the indoor unit that has an indoor heat exchanger, passes indoor air through the indoor heat exchanger, and exchanges heat of the indoor air;   a humidifier that supplies moisture to a room and raises a humidity in the room; and   a controller that controls the indoor unit and the humidifier, wherein   in a cleaning mode, the controller controls the humidifier to raise the humidity in the room, and then controls the indoor unit to perform a cleaning motion of cleaning a surface of the indoor heat exchanger by generating dew condensation water on the surface of the indoor heat exchanger.   
     
     
         2 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 1 , wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller controls the humidifier for the humidity in the room to reach a predetermined humidity, and then controls the indoor unit to perform the cleaning motion of cleaning the surface of the indoor heat exchanger by generating dew condensation water on the surface of the indoor heat exchanger. 
     
     
         3 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein the controller causes the indoor heat exchanger to function as an evaporator and causes the humidifier to perform humidification in the cleaning motion. 
     
     
         4 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein when the humidity in the room is equal to or higher than the predetermined humidity at a start of the cleaning mode, the controller causes the air conditioner to start the cleaning motion without causing the humidifier to perform humidification in the cleaning mode. 
     
     
         5 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 1 , wherein the humidifier is provided in the air conditioner. 
     
     
         6 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 1 , wherein the air conditioner and the humidifier are separate bodies. 
     
     
         7 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 1 , wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller sets a humidifying capacity of the humidifier to be equal to or higher than a maximum value of a humidifying capacity that appears in an operating mode other than the cleaning mode. 
     
     
         8 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the indoor heat exchanger includes a first heat exchange section located upstream of a refrigerant flowing through the indoor heat exchanger and a second heat exchange section located downstream of the refrigerant flowing through the indoor heat exchanger when dew condensation water is generated on the indoor heat exchanger in the cleaning motion, and   the controller performs control of setting substantially all of the first heat exchange section and the second heat exchange section as an evaporation region at a start of the cleaning motion, and changing the second heat exchange section to a superheat region or a condensation region in a midway of the cleaning mode.   
     
     
         9 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein when the humidity does not reach the predetermined humidity even after a predetermined time has elapsed from a start of humidification of the humidifier in the cleaning mode, the controller ends the humidification and notifies that the cleaning motion cannot be performed. 
     
     
         10 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein in the cleaning mode, when the humidity does not reach the predetermined humidity even after a predetermined time has elapsed from a start of humidification of the humidifier, the controller ends the humidification and starts the cleaning motion. 
     
     
         11 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein the humidifier is provided in the air conditioner. 
     
     
         12 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 3 , wherein the humidifier is provided in the air conditioner. 
     
     
         13 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 4 , wherein the humidifier is provided in the air conditioner. 
     
     
         14 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein the air conditioner and the humidifier are separate bodies. 
     
     
         15 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 3 , wherein the air conditioner and the humidifier are separate bodies. 
     
     
         16 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 4 , wherein the air conditioner and the humidifier are separate bodies. 
     
     
         17 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 2 , wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller sets a humidifying capacity of the humidifier to be equal to or higher than a maximum value of a humidifying capacity that appears in an operating mode other than the cleaning mode. 
     
     
         18 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 3 , wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller sets a humidifying capacity of the humidifier to be equal to or higher than a maximum value of a humidifying capacity that appears in an operating mode other than the cleaning mode. 
     
     
         19 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 4 , wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller sets a humidifying capacity of the humidifier to be equal to or higher than a maximum value of a humidifying capacity that appears in an operating mode other than the cleaning mode. 
     
     
         20 . The air conditioning system according to  claim 5 , wherein in the cleaning mode, the controller sets a humidifying capacity of the humidifier to be equal to or higher than a maximum value of a humidifying capacity that appears in an operating mode other than the cleaning mode.